Anna Karenina: Keira Knightley reunites for a third time with director Joe Wright (Atonement, Pride and Prejudice) in this big-screen adaptation of Tolstoy’s classic novel. Expect lavish costumes, gorgeously styled sets and melodrama galore – as well as plenty of eye candy from male leads Jude Law and Aaron Taylor-Johnson.

Cloud Atlas: The novel this film is based on is a sprawling work that was thought to be impossible to produce onscreen. It took three directors (including Lana and Andy Wachowski of the Matrix), an A-list cast (Tom Hanks and Halle Berry) and a hefty budget to get it done.(HANDOUT/REUTERS)

Much Ado About Nothing: Few filmmakers have had a better year than Joss Whedon, who directed The Avengers and co-wrote The Cabin in the Woods. So this modern-day version of the William Shakespeare play – shot at Whedon’s house in California over 12 days – certainly shouldn’t lack for attention.(DANNY MOLOSHOK/REUTERS)

Bad 25: Director Spike Lee embarks on a behind-the-scenes look at the creatively fertile and personally turbulent period that ushered in Michael Jackson’s transformation from teen pin-up to troubled icon. Featuring interviews from Kanye West, Cee Lo Green and Mariah Carey, Bad 25 promises to be an important document.(MAX ROSSI/REUTERS)

Looper: It gets automatic buzz as the opening film of this year’s fest but unlike some previous kickoff selections this movie has “big hit” written all over it. Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis and Emily Blunt, it’s a twisty time-travel thriller that has blockbuster potential.(Alan Markfield/AP)

Midnight’s Children: Canada’s Deepa Mehta and author Salman Rushdie make up the dream team behind this big-screen adaptation of Rushdie’s sweeping, magical, comic-epic novel about India’s early days of independence. With Mehta’s eye for magic realism and Rushdie tapped as screenwriter, the ingredients are there for an over-the-top spectacle.

On The Road: Walter Salles’s adaptation of the seminal Jack Kerouac book is buzzy not so much for the film itself as it is for its scandal-plagued star, Kristen Stewart. Already, journalists have been sternly warned to steer clear of personal questions.(GREGORY SMITH/AP)

The Place Beyond the Pines: Star Ryan Gosling has worked with most of these producers several times now, on lauded titles including Half Nelson and Blue Valentine, which was also helmed by director/co-writer Derek Cianfrance. The A-list cast also includes Bradley Cooper, Ray Liotta and Eva Mendes.(JONATHAN SHORT/AP)

Seven Psychopaths: This comedy sees writer-director Martin McDonagh pairing up again with Irish star Colin Farrell after the Oscar-nominated In Bruges. Farrell plays a screenwriter who gets ensnared in organized crime when his friends kidnap a gangster’s Shih Tzu. Farrell flexes his comedy chops alongside Woody Harrelson and Christopher Walken.

The Company You Keep: The Sundance Kid will talk up this political thriller about a militant Weather Underground activist on the run from a journalist. Robert Redford directs and heads up a near-blinding cast that includes Shia LaBeouf, Julie Christie, Stanley Tucci, Nick Nolte, Terrence Howard and Susan Sarandon.

The Master: Consider this weighty drama a full-on Oscar offensive: Philip Seymour Hoffman plays a spiritual guru who develops a cult-like organization, while Joaquin Phoenix is a troubled Second World War vet who falls under his tutelage. Paul Thomas Anderson directs; Amy Adams and Laura Dern round out the cast.(AP)

West of Memphis: Johnny Depp and Eddie Vedder appear in this Amy Berg doc about the “West Memphis Three,” teens who were convicted of murdering three boys in 1994. The film presents a convincing case outlining why the teens – who were freed last year – were likely innocent.(MICHEL SPINGLER/AP)